At the main gate of ANHS, the rows of cherry trees were showing off the most enchanting scenery of early spring. On both sides of the path, the seas of blossoms intertwined and scattered with the breeze.
"Uwaa~ so this is the spot you guys found, huh."
Leading her class to the front gate, Ichinose couldn't help sighing at how perfect this cherry-blossom viewing location was.
That's right—what Yukio and Matsushita had ultimately chosen was the same front gate they'd used to see off Manabu.
Because of the various special exams, buses would occasionally come and go through here, and the delivery trucks used the main gate on a daily basis as well.
To make it easy for vehicles to pass through quickly, the road at the gate had been built wide enough for two buses to safely drive side by side. For most of the first-year students to sit and view blossoms here, it was more than spacious enough.
On top of that, the cherry trees lining both sides of the road were blooming in full force. No matter where you sat—even if you sat right in the middle of the pavement—you could easily see the riot of blossoms above.
This time, it was Sakayanagi and Ichinose walking side by side at the front, with the members of Sakayanagi's class following behind. Further back, students from Yukio's class and Class D arrived one after another.
Hanami had, before they knew it, become the biggest spring-break event for the entire first year.
As the initiators of the gathering, Ichinose's class was clearly well prepared. The picnic blankets spread over the ground, the large bags full of snacks and drinks—all of it was provided by them.
The students basically just sat down according to class, and in this peaceful atmosphere, even those who were usually rivals relaxed for once, set aside their competition, and just chatted with their classmates, cracked April Fools' jokes, and admired the cherry blossoms.
Everyone felt incredibly refreshed.
On the other picnic blankets, once the snacks and drinks were opened, it was just a group of kids the same age. There weren't that many real barriers between them to begin with.
Once they started eating and drinking in earnest, the mood heated right up. Every now and then a gutsy student confident in their singing voice would get up and perform a song, and they'd even leave a bit of open space for the street-dance types to bust out a move or two.
The surrounding students circled around them with cheers; the applause fell like rain—it was a scene full of laughter and joy.
Ishizaki, being "extra," was the only one lying down. Everyone else was sitting up to view the blossoms, but he alone was flat on his back.
A classmate from Ichinose's class, who had sung together with him at the courage-test event, came over wanting to do a duet with him. When they saw the state Ishizaki was in, they couldn't help asking curiously:
"Eh? What happened to you, Ishizaki-kun? Do you like cherry blossoms that much? You have to lie there and stare at them without blinking?"
"..." Ishizaki's face twisted with misery.
Like hell he wanted to lie down—he'd love to stand up and run around, okay? But thanks to his injury, standing hurt, sitting hurt, so all he could do was lie flat like this.
Someone nearby gave a quick rundown of Ishizaki's day of suffering, and the Ichinose-class student let out a goose–honking laugh.
On the central picnic blanket, Yukio took a drink from the can Ichinose offered him, and Sakayanagi naturally sat down at his side.
"It's been a while since I've been this relaxed."
"Yeah~" Ichinose agreed with a smile, and took the open spot on Yukio's other side. "Ever since we enrolled, everyone's been competing nonstop."
Matsushita glanced at Sakayanagi on Yukio's left, then at Ichinose on his right, and let out a playful smile.
Since she was the future private tutor, not wedging herself into that battlefront was clearly the correct choice. So, very naturally, she sat down across from the three of them instead.
With elegant movements, she lifted her skirt slightly, folded her legs to one side, and knelt down in a neat seiza-style posture that matched the curve of her back.
Ichinose wasn't paying attention to Matsushita. She was busily pulling out two food boxes.
"Even that luxury cruise in summer break, and the forest training camp after winter break—"
"All of us first-years took part in them, but they were still special exams, so they weren't relaxing at all."
"It's lucky we have this peaceful spring break, where everyone in the first year can gather like this and unwind."
With that, Ichinose happily lifted the lids with both hands.
"Come on, everyone, give it a try—here's onigiri, sushi, and some wagashi sweets. I don't know if they'll be to your taste~"
"They really are exquisite." Sakayanagi gave them a glance, tone full of implication. "Anyone can see you put a lot of effort into these."
Whether Ichinose actually heard the subtext in Sakayanagi's words or not, under the soft glow of the blossoms her cheeks were adorably shy.
"Y-yeah, well, when you're making food, it has to be made with care, right?"
Yukio ignored the exchange between the two girls and first picked up a piece of mizuyōkan to try.
The red bean paste had been milled very finely, with none of the usual graininess—
instead, it had a very smooth mouthfeel that clearly showed real effort had gone into it.
It made Yukio's eyes light up.
"This is really good. Tastes great."
"R-really?!"
Ichinose was so delighted that she immediately pushed the entire dessert box as close to Yukio as possible.
"Then eat lots, okay, hone– I mean, Yukio-kun!"
Honey?
Sakayanagi and Matsushita both smiled faintly at the slip, then exchanged a quick conspiratorial look. They could see the amusement in each other's eyes, and then, in perfect unspoken sync, both turned their gazes toward the food boxes.
Without saying a word, it was as if they'd already had an entire conversation. In that easy rhythm, each of them picked a different dessert to try, and after a bite, both praised Ichinose's cooking.
"The flavor's wonderful, Honami."
"Would you teach me how to make these sometime?"
Ichinose's face was full of a smile she couldn't hold back.
"Hehe, i-it's really not as good as you're making it sound…"
Yukio watched the whole thing from the side. He didn't know exactly what Sakayanagi and Matsushita were plotting, but he had a feeling that if this kept up, Ichinose might be in for a little bit of trouble.
The others might not see it, but at least with Sakayanagi, he understood all too well.
Her stunt with the aloe and Ibuki was proof enough of how black her belly could be. They couldn't let her start something in such a relaxing moment. So, downing the painstakingly made mizuyōkan in one quick gulp, Yukio casually brushed at his clothes.
On the surface, he was just brushing off crumbs, but the real goal was to draw everyone's attention.
"Let's take a group photo."
"I second that~"
Ichinose was the first to respond, immediately calling over her best friend Shiranami from the next blanket to be the photographer.
But when she turned back around after arranging things, she froze.
Sakayanagi had already claimed Yukio's left side. On the right, at some point, Matsushita had leaned in over two food boxes to take up that position too.
She'd only turned around for a single sentence, and… it was already like this?
Still, Ichinose relaxed again almost right away. It was only natural for Yukio to be popular; she couldn't really get hung up on it.
Instead, she quickly walked around behind him. After a brief moment of hesitation, she blushed and rather boldly set her chin down on top of his head.
The resulting shot turned out great.
Once Shiranami sent over the photo, Sakayanagi and Matsushita both let go of Yukio and scooted closer to huddle around the phone, admiring the picture together.
Maybe because the four "leaders" of the year were moving around, everyone else followed their example. Soon, students from every class were grouping up to take pictures, messing around and having a blast.
In the end, when things reached peak hype, Yukio's class chipped in the points to rent a drone from Keyaki Mall, and they took a giant group shot of all the first-year students together.
That group photo of the first-years beneath the sea of cherry blossoms would, without a doubt, become a memory no less important than their graduation photos two years down the line.
....
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